The God I Know: With Twelve-Week Study Guide

Copyright © 2018 Donna Varnes.

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The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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ISBN: 978-1-5320-5602-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-5604-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-5603-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018909946

iUniverse rev. date: 08/29/2018

CONTENTS

SESSION ONE

Introduction

How To Use This Study

Personal Prayer Evaluation

SESSION TWO

Faith Stretcher

1     Saved Because Of A Little Boy

2     The Lost Ticket

3     Blessed Seeds

4     The Smoking Engine

5     The No Falling Prayer

Reflections

SESSION THREE

Faith Stretcher

6     Strange Double Healing

7     The Sweethearts Banquet

8     The Salesman

9     The Terrible Cough

10   Feeding The Eleven

Reflections

SESSION FOUR

Faith Stretcher

11   The Ear Infection

12   The Headache Prayer

13   Kerry Gets Run Over

14   The Frog Prayer

15   Is This Regular Food Or Do We Have To Pray Over It?

Reflections

SESSION FIVE

Faith Stretcher

16   The Missing Finger

17   Accidents, Tornados And The Red Sports Car

18   The Song God Gave And Took Away

19   The Little Hotdog Prayer

20   Stretching The Last Gallon

Reflections

SESSION SIX

Faith Stretcher

21   He Set Me In A Large Place

22   Our Daily Bread Isn’t Practical Lord

23   The Diaper Prayer

24   The Prime Rib Story

25   The Milk Prayer

Reflections

SESSION SEVEN

Faith Stretcher

26   The Blue Station Wagon

27   The Miracle Of The Stuff

28   Here—Will This Cover It?

29   God Speaks

30   The Heavy Weight

Reflections

SESSION EIGHT

Faith Stretcher

31   Zig-Zagging On The Glennallen

32   The Hail Prayer

33   The Fur Coat Incident

34   The Great Physcian Makes A Night Call

35   Degenreative Disc Disease Reversed

Reflections

SESSION NINE

Faith Stretcher

36   Jeff’s Dog

37   Learning Spiritual Warfare

38   The Cockroach Prayer

39   The Christmas Dress

40   The Angel Surprise

Reflections

SESSION TEN

Faith Stretcher

41   My Twenty Dollar Allowance From The Lord

42   Sleeping In Tornado Alley

43   The Wedding Blessing

44   The Forgotten Purse

45   The Forgotten Keys

Reflections

SESSION ELEVEN

Faith Stretcher

46   The Teeth Prayer

47   The Praying Over Tires

48   Kevin’s Harrowing Experience

49   Amanda’s Wreck

Reflections

SESSION TWELVE

Faith Stretcher

Conclusion

My Own Praise Reports

Personal Prayer Re-Evaluation

The God I Know Verse Index

SESSION ONE

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

Write this into a permanent record to be remembered forever (Exodus 17:14)

God told me not to worry about promoting my books and writings, but to get back to doing what He told me to do—write. Quite a few years ago I got the idea to write a book to pass down to my children and grandchildren. I wanted to tell them that the reason I was convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was a God and that He was involved in the world and our lives and that He loved us, was not because of something I read in a book or heard someone give a convincing talk on but because God himself has proved himself to me over and over in my life.

I wanted to leave an account of the many miracles, prayer answers, and divine interventions that have occurred in the lives of my own family over the years. The part that is so amazing is not that he still does miracles and answers prayers but that He will do so for ordinary people living ordinary lives and on a daily basis. You don’t have to be somebody special. You don’t have to earn his love or deserve your prayer answer. Matthew 9:29 says, and Jesus said unto them . . . According to your faith be it unto you.

God’s advice to those who feel like they don’t have enough faith is found in Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Get into the word—study it—apply it—obey it. And all the while keep praying about everything and God will do the rest. Your faith will grow. If we truly believed that what we prayed would come to pass, we would have no problem obeying the verse that says, Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

I also want to clarify something. You might get the impression by hearing the testimonies I am about to share that I pray mostly for myself and my family, which is not true. We have a list of over 150 people and ministries that we pray for weekly. It is just that I feel the Lord has impressed me to share MY personal testimony, and let others share theirs.

My hope is that as you read MY testimonies that you will be filled with hope and faith yourself and begin to reach out to our Heavenly Father who already has his hands stretched out towards you.

NOW ALSO WHEN I AM OLD AND

GREY-HEADED O GOD,

FORSAKE ME NOT,

UNTIL I HAVE SHOWN THY

STRENGTH UNTO THIS GENERATION AND THY POWER

TO EVERYONE THAT IS TO COME

PSALMS 71:1

HOW TO USE THIS STUDY

This is a 12-week Small Group Study. Each weekly session consists of eight short assignments explained below. There are no right or wrong answers and many could be answered with a simple yes or no. However they are meant for inner reflection and journaling so that at the end of this study you could use your notes to write your own GOD I KNOW to pass on for generations. It sounds like a lot; however it should take less time than watching a movie. Expect to get out of this journey in prayer what you put into it. Just like in any pursuit, to get good at something you must study AND practice. That means you should be asking God to help you to be bolder, increase in faith and pray more effectively. To take full advantage of this class, you may have to get out of your personal comfort zone. Be willing to practice praying more both privately and publically. This group is a safe learning, sharing and growing environment. Please don’t share anything you have heard in class without the permission of the people involved.

The following describes each area of homework:

1. FAITH STRETCHER: I have chosen selections from The Bible, not to correlate with my own prayer testimonies, but to prove from His Word that God has always been doing all different kinds of mind-blowing things when people call out to him in faith. As you read these passages I pray they will stretch your faith. I want you to be reminded of the extraordinary things God has already done for believers in the past. I believe that is exactly why God included these true stories in His Word to be our example and cause us to ask bold prayers like the Old and New Testament believers did.

2. THE GOD I KNOW: This is where you will find my personal testimonies. I share these true modern day testimonies to convince you that God is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8). He is just waiting to hear from you, not as some Genie in the sky, but as a Father who loves you, wants the best for you, and has a good plan for your life (Jeremiah 29:11).

The following assignments will be found in the REFLECTIONS sections of your book

3. THAT REMINDS ME: My prayer is that as you do the reading assignments, God will bring past incidences to your remembrance. Use this time to slow down and reflect on past experiences that you might have considered just lucky coincidences or that things just sort of worked out. Perhaps you never really gave God the credit. Take time to write a note of gratitude for any past blessings that come to mind!

4. MY HEART TO HEART WITH GOD: This is the section where you get to be totally honest with God and tell Him what you are REALLY thinking, feeling and struggling with. You might think this is the same as the prayer request but it isn’t. Sometimes we find ourselves not even knowing what to pray yet we are desperate for a God solution. In communicating with God we often try to clean up, formalize, and religiousize our prayers. We want our prayer to be pretty, grand, perfect, and sound like prayers we may have memorized as a child, or heard some very spiritual person pray. NO! Stop all that! God knows what you are thinking and feeling. He knows all about your feelings of doubt, fear, disappointments, and even anger. He knows the sins you may be struggling with. There is no point in trying to ignore or cover these things up. As you pour out your heart to your Heavenly Father, you will discover He is the God of all comfort and is a very present help in the day of trouble (Psalms 46:1).

5. I’M LISTENING GOD: This is the part that is often neglected. We say our prayers and then hurry off to start our day, but God wants to fellowship with us. Our time with God is intended to be a two-way conversation. Take time to quietly wait before the Lord to see if He has something to say to you after your heart to heart. Jot down any thoughts that pop into your head while you are being still. You may be surprised to discover God ideas coming to mind that you might have missed if you had not purposely set aside time to just listen. Even if you are not positive it is God’s and not your own thoughts you are hearing, I encourage you to write them down anyway. God will often verify it is from Him by repeating the same message through other sources. Have you ever been thinking about something and then go to church and that is what the pastor is preaching on, and then on the way home the same verse or thought is on the radio or devotional you are reading? It will happen if you are paying attention, but often that is our problem. Our lives are usually hectic and stressful! We are trying to cram everything in, and we are not paying attention to the Still small voice within (1 Kings 19:12). God knows when we are ready to hear and ready to listen. Quiet yourself before the Lord. He will speak to you if you show Him you are expectantly waiting to hear what He has to say.

6. PRAYER PROMPT: This section will contain a question designed to get you started on your prayer journey. Sometimes our prayers start to sound all alike because we forget the many different area’s that could benefit from some God intervention.

7. PRAYER REQUESTS: Take this opportunity to write in this section your prayer requests. Try to include at least one for yourself and one for others. Make sure each one is specific enough so that you will definitely know when your prayer is answered. For instance, bless Aunt Sally, is rather vague and is an ongoing prayer, as is protect my children. For this prayer journey, prayers that are more specific such as Please help Johnny with today’s spelling test, or Please help us have a safe, accident free trip this weekend, are prayers that if Johnny gets a good score on his spelling test and if you made it home from your trip without incident, you will be able to say Yes, God answered my prayer.

8. PRAISE REPORTS: This section is found in the